Governor Brown Opens Climate Week NYC

New York City, New York - On his second day in New York City, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres at the United Nations Headquarters, delivered remarks at the opening ceremony for Climate Week NYC 2017 and discussed the growing importance of climate action from subnational governments and the business community at events with other global climate leaders, including France's Minister of Ecological and Inclusive Transition Nicolas Hulot, former Vice President Al Gore and Michael Bloomberg.

“Climate change, if unchecked, threatens all humanity,” said Governor Brown. “California, with purpose and resolve, will join with the rest of the world to decarbonize the economy.”

Governor Brown helped kick-off Climate Week NYC 2017 – the first major gathering of international climate leaders since the U.S. announced its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement – with remarks at an opening ceremony alongside Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, Hawaii Governor David Ige and others.

The Governor then met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, United Nations Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change Michael Bloomberg, former Vice President Al Gore and other climate leaders at the United Nations Headquarters. The Governor and Secretary-General Guterres discussed the importance of subnational jurisdictions and other sectors forging alliances to curb greenhouse gas emissions, California’s upcoming Global Climate Action Summit, reducing the impacts of climate change and ways to scale up actions to implement the Paris Agreement.

Governor Brown speaks at Climate Week NYC opening ceremony.

Governor Brown meets with Secretary-General Guterres, former Vice President Gore and other climate leaders at the United Nations Headquarters.

Additionally, Governor Brown spoke with France’s Minister of Ecological and Inclusive Transition Nicolas Hulot about further engaging the business sector in decarbonization efforts and measures to track progress toward climate goals at an event hosted by the World Economic Forum. The Governor also joined NextGen America Founder and President Tom Steyer at an event hosted by the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group at the New York Times headquarters, where they discussed the transition to a clean energy economy and the renewed drive for climate action by U.S. cities, states, businesses and civil society in response to the federal government’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement.

Yesterday, Governor Brown welcomed the Republic of Marshall Islands and nine other U.S. and international states and jurisdictions to the Under2 Coalition, which now includes 187 jurisdictions on six continents that collectively represent more than 1.2 billion people and $28.8 trillion GDP – equivalent to over 16 percent of the global population and 39 percent of the global economy.

Tomorrow, Governor Brown will join former Secretary of State John Kerry, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, World Bank President Dr. Jim Kim and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo at the Yale Climate Conference in New Haven, Connecticut.